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Grenadier, 27th Foot 1751 by P H Smitherman

In 1751 David Morier, a Swiss artist, produced a series of paintings showing a grenadier of each infantry regiment for the Duke of Cumberland, and this series, together with the Clothing Warrant of 1751, gives us a very clear picture of the dress of the army then. The details of this image are taken from one of these paintings, showing a grenadier typical of that time. The elaborate lace is very striking, and the wings on the shoulders are peculiar to grenadiers, as is the one shoulder strap on the the left shoulder to accommodate the strap of the pouch. Wings were also worn by bandsmen - and they have retained them to the present day - as were mitre caps similar in cut to those of the grenadiers but ornamented with devices of drums and flags instead of the royal cipher or ancient badge of the regiment. The end of this mans ring bayonet is seen under the coat, mounted on a frog with his basket-hilted sword. Swords were retained by the grenadiers after they had been given up by the other privates of the regiment, but had ceased to be worn by about 1790. It will be noted that the cut of the coat is loose. It is sometimes said that the Duke of Cumberland made the clothing of the British soldier tight in imitation of Frederick the Greats Prussians. In fact he did not do so, and it is doubtful whether even Frederick made his men wear tight clothes on campaigns, although he certainly, at the end of his reign, made them wear tight clothes on parade. In the British army it was laid down that all red cloth had to be washed and shrunk before it was made up into coats. This did rather spoil the appearance of the new coats, and colonels did sometimes induce contractors to make up coats without shrinking the cloth. If they became wet they could shrink and become very tight. The personal unpopularity of the Duke of Cumberland led to considerable denigration of his work for the organisation and administration of the army, which was badly needed and well carried out. The 27th (Inniskilling) Regiment of Foot was raised in 1689, and was one of the regiments permitted, with the Six Old Corps, to display its ancient badge, on its grenadier caps. The regiment is better known as the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers, and it still displays the castle an name on its appointments.